Second commissions lawsuit filed in Nevada
A total of 22 defendants are named, including NAR, local and national brokerages, and several associations and MLSs.
Things are coming up snake eyes for the real estate industry in Nevada, which now has a second buyer agent commission lawsuit on the table.
The suit was filed on Friday, Feb. 16, in U.S. District Court and takes aim at familiar targets: the National Association of Realtors, 15 brokerages, and a handful of MLSs and associations.
Case details: The case is similar to other copycats, alleging a conspiracy to require home sellers to pay an inflated amount to the buyer's agent in violation of federal antitrust law. Like the other Nevada suit, it also accuses the defendants of violating the Nevada Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
However, it is a bit more narrow in scope. It seeks class action status for any person who listed a home for sale on a Nevada MLS over the past four years and paid a buyer broker commission to a listing agent or broker affiliated with one of the defendants. The other Nevada case seeking class action status doesn't limit itself to named defendants.
Plaintiff: Andrea Boykin, who now lives in Minnesota but sold a Las Vegas home in 2022 for $525,000 and paid $26,250 in commissions (2.5% to the listing agent and 2.5% to the buyer's agent).
Defendants: Brokerages named in the lawsuit include The Agency, BHHS Affiliates, Compass, Douglas Elliman Realty, eXp, HomeSmart, Realty ONE Group and Redfin.
In addition to NAR, there are a half-dozen associations named in the lawsuit, including Nevada Realtors and Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, and two MLSs.
Several of the defendants were also named in the previous Nevada complaint.
Consolidation update: As commissions lawsuits get added to the pile, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation is considering a motion to consolidate many of the copycats into one large case. It's scheduled to hear arguments on March 28.